face the wall

 I took eighteen credits in MA in Theology at the seminary of St. Vincent in Pennsylvania.
It was in year 2009, middle of the Fall semester. The courses I was taking were tough especially Latin. I found out that studying foreign language in the later (I was 53 years old then) years of one's life  was indeed a challenging one. My seminary-life was a test of resilience and perseverance.

There was one unique practice,though it may be strange to others, that I learned before I began studying. I learned such practice while I was still  at own community in New Mexico.

This practice was taught to me by the counselor who helped me in preparation for my entry to the seminary in year 2008 for my priesthood formation.

It was the practice of facing the wall and staring at the wall every time I would get overwhelmed by the turnabout of events for the day and the thoughts of  forthcoming events that I had to deal with in the next days to come.

So, I spent the whole semester  facing the wall, staring at it and then leaning against it every time I would reflect on the outcome of the day's event and planning what to do next in the next days to come in my seminary-life.